Reflecting on Staff Summer Camp Memories
We’re celebrating Camp Alice Chester’s 100th birthday by looking back at Girl Scout camp history and the Girl Scouts who shaped it. Do you want to share your favorite camp stories? Fill out this form to share your story with GSWISE today.
We’re heading back to the late 1990s to hear from former camp staff member and current GSWISE staff Sue Molina.
The best time I ever had at summer camp was as a staff member at a local camp from 1998-2004. I was looking to experience something new that first summer, so on a whim I answered a job ad in the paper for a counselor position. Little did I know that it would change the trajectory of my life! I went on to be a waterfront director and camp director – and then transitioned to full-time council staff in 2004.
My summers serving as a camp staff member helped teach me how to work as a team with people of different abilities, interests, and backgrounds. I was empowered to take initiative in making decisions and getting things done, which sometimes included unexpected tasks like learning how to use a gas-powered log splitter to prep firewood. I problem solved some of the most interesting situations I couldn’t have ever imagined would occur, and I learned how to cope with my debilitating fear of spiders!
My fondest memories of summer camp include serenading campers in their unit after closing campfires, waking up at sunrise to swim with campers across the lake so they could earn their ‘lake swim’ certificate, teaching campers how to sail, and backpacking with campers on the Ice Age Trail. Other fun memories that come back to me now as I think about my time at summer camp include naming the golf cart Stewball, going on night hikes across camp without a flashlight, performing acrobatics at the all-camp campfires with the assistant camp director, and the summer I kept count of all the mice (and a squirrel) I caught in the director’s cabin.
Over those summers at camp, I was blessed with time spent immersed in the outdoors, the privilege to mentor and coach my staff teams, and building meaningful friendships that have lasted the past 25 years. Working at summer camp was one of the hardest and most fulfilling experiences of my early career, and I’m proud to say that my time at camp has helped shape the person who I am today.
Celebrate all things Girl Scout camping with us on Saturday, October 5, 2024. Our special, family-friendly 100th Anniversary Celebration will be packed with your all-time favorite camp activities and friends – new and old! Current members can register here today. Alum and community members can register here.
